QUARTERLY Transform Your Agency’s DIGITAL PRESENCE FROM CLICKS TO CARE: BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONAL HIRE THE ULTIMATE By Steve “The Hurricane” Weiss BUYING AN EXISTING HOME CARE BUSINESS SIX CRUCIAL LESSONS LEARNED Making Lives Better... With A Change In PERSPECTIVE! LEVERAGING VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS IN HOME CARE: Unlocking Cost Savings And Efficiency With Heart From HIGH Turnover To HIGH Retention Building A LOYAL Caregiver Workforce 6 KEY INDUSTRY TRENDS TO TRANSFORM BENCHMARKING DATA INTO BUSINESS DECISIONS FALL 2024 MSRP $19.95 UNDERSTANDING MEDICAID FOR NON-MEDICAL HOME CARE: Tips To Win & Manage More Referrals0822 28 Leveraging Virtual Assistants In Home Care: Unlocking Cost Savings And Efficiency With Heart — by Regina Asuncion From High Turnover To High Retention: Building A Loyal Caregiver Workforce — by Jon Riede From Clicks To Care: Transform Your Agency’s Digital Presence — by Leah Kosatsky Understanding Medicaid For Non-Medical Home Care: Tips To Win & Manage More Referrals — by Julio Barea 12 Buying An Existing Home Care Business: Six Crucial Lessons Learned — by Carrie & Patrick Gray 36 32 6 Key Industry Trends To Transform Benchmarking Data Into Business Decisions — by Todd Austin Making Lives Better... With A Change In Perspective — by Tina Valdez Hire The Ultimate Business Development Professional — by Steve Weiss 04 16 ContentsWelcome Evolve. Adapt. Transform. Thrive. Welcome to Issue #11 of Home Care Evolution Quarterly! Home Care Evolution Quarterly is for those home care business leaders who inspire to continuously learn in the industry. We exist to help you stay up to date on new trends and data from vetted contributing authors, all of who are experts in this industry. This magazine is dedicated to helping YOU be on point in your: ● Sales & Marketing ● Operations ● Recruitment & Retention ● Financial & Multiple Revenue Streams In this issue of Home Care Evolution magazine, the contributors and I provide you with current topics, breaking ideas, & practical strategies you will use to gain better ideas and solve bigger problems for new levels of success. In this issue: ● Making Lives Better... With A Change In Perspective — by Tina Valdez ● Leveraging Virtual Assistants In Home Care: Unlocking Cost Savings And Efficiency With Heart — by Regina Asuncion ● Buying An Existing Home Care Business: Six Crucial Lessons Learned — by Carrie & Patrick Gray ● Hire The Ultimate Business Development Professional — by Steve Weiss ● From High Turnover To High Retention: Building A Loyal Caregiver Workforce — by Jon Riede ● From Clicks To Care: Transform Your Agency’s Digital Presence — by Leah Kosatsky ● Understanding Medicaid For Non-Medical Home Care: Tips To Win & Manage More Referrals — by Julio Barea ● 6 Key Industry Trends To Transform Benchmarking Data Into Business Decisions — by Todd Austin If there is a topic that is important to you that you would like to see in a future issue, please contact me directly. Sincerely, Steve "The Hurricane" President and CEO Home Care Evolution steve@homecareevolution.com 848-444-9865 " But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:33Tina Valdez Tina Valdez is a change agent whose greatest superpowers are believing anything is possible and staying curious. After spending thirty years in corporate America for utility, telecommunication, health insurance, system integration, and software development companies, in 2018 she was ready for something new. Her experience in human resources, finance, sales and marketing, product development, and large business transformation prepared her to own and operate Visiting Angels in the Seattle area, which she bought in 2019. Her greatest love is family. Her daughter, Amanda, lives in New York City and her son, Steven, lives in Los Angeles with their spouses and her three grandchildren; Cyrus (NY), Sonny, and Gene (LA). She and her husband enjoy traveling, music, and classic cars. She loves creativity and always visits art museums during her travels. https://www.visitingangels.com/seattle/home PERSPECTIVE! MAKING LIVES BETTER... WITH A CHANGE IN 5 B usiness transformation includes people, process, and technology. This vast topic can be approached from many different perspectives. I transformed when I became a business owner. I had decades of experience from my corporate career, but nothing prepared me for the fast paced fluidity of the home care industry. The client’s needs change, referral partners have a high turn-over rate, and caregiver availability and circumstances shift from one minute to the next. In this business, the demand from clients is high, and supply of caregivers can be challenging. Acceptance and willingness to make life better for our caregivers has been a key factor in my business success. Making life better for our employees, makes life better for those we care for, and this is my vision for our company: Making Life Better. I want to share how we transformed our attitude and beliefs about caregivers, the key points in the caregiver process, and technology that we use to support our caregivers. Transforming our attitude and beliefs is the people side of the change process. Our mission is to find, attract, hire, and retain superstar caregivers that align with our values, which are 1) the opportunity to serve, 2) lead with your heart, and 3) commitment, so that we can “Make Life Better” for our clients and their loved ones. Caregivers have a choice in who they work for, when they work, where they work, and how many people they care for in an hour. I’ll share how we take it to the caregivers. In this industry we often hear, “We can’t find caregivers.” We recognize that it is our responsibility during the recruiting process to attract the caregivers. We have at least five or more applicants every day. This contradicts the statement that we can’t find caregivers. In our company we don’t say “We can’t find caregivers”, but rather we offer “How can I attract this caregiver?”. Attracting a caregiver starts by recognizing that the superstar caregivers do it from the heart, which means we have to care for and about the caregivers deeply. We authentically welcome caregivers as if we are hosting them in our home. We offer competitive wages, health benefits (medical, dental, and vision), 401k matching, technology that allows them to access the client’s information, clock in/ out, look for open shifts, and a gratitude bonus in November depending on company performance. Caregivers frequently ask during the interview process if we allow overtime and the answer is, “Yes.” As a side note, the Caregiver Experience Manager is responsible for both the scheduling and recruiting of caregivers. During the interview they consider which client to assign. The relationship between the caregiver and scheduler starts immediately. A secondary mission of the company is teaching and learning. We have a professional trainer on staff supporting caregivers with orientation and the ongoing caregiver training plan. The caregivers’ training plan starts during orientation when we ask them about their past training and what skills they want to enhance. In addition, we offer specialty programs that have curated training curriculum which support specialties such as; Dementia, Parkinson’s, Hospital Discharge, and Stroke Recovery to name a few. Retaining a caregiver continues by being aware that their lives are fluid, accepting that their availability changes, listening to MAKING LIVES BETTER...6 them, and striving to keep them in their neighborhood. The key is recognizing their need and taking action to fulfill them. The combination of our operational systems makes it easy for caregivers to communicate with the office, gain access to their client’s information, look for open shifts, and enhance their skills through training. We use a combination of the following technology - 1) Applicant Stack and Paradox Olivia using AI for applicant screening and interview scheduling, 2) Axiscare mobile app for access to client information, clocking in and out, and searching for open shifts, 3) Textingbiz. com for constant communication, 4) Relias for home care training curriculum, 5) Home Care Pulse for caregiver feedback, 6) Retain for the 15, 30, 60 and 90 day caregiver check-ins, and 7) the Visiting Angels Resource Center (ARC) for home care operational resources. We are continuously working to streamline and automate our systems to best support the caregivers and inevitably the clients. Becoming a home care business owner meant more education for me. I learned early from industry experts that when caregivers interview they are concerned about pay and benefits, and once they start working, they want to know that you authentically care about them. Caregivers need to know they are not alone in the field. Our Care Coordinator is dedicated to connecting with caregivers and giving them metaphorical hugs. During our daily stand-up meeting, there is one person who reviews all of the care notes and highlights anything that requires follow-up by the Care Manager. Caregivers appreciate that their notes are reviewed each day and that we follow-up. Office staff play a crucial role within our company. Caring for a caregiver can be many things; from getting them a Lyft, moving a client schedule to accommodate daycare, a gratitude bonus in November, providing PPE, or listening to all sides of a situation that occurs. Caregivers need to know that everyone in the office is fair and as the leader, I hold my office staff accountable to behave as coaches and mentors to our caregivers. They must gather information and hear from everyone involved in any situation that arises and then discern where the truth lies. We are all teaching and learning, and the roles of coaching and mentoring show up for each of us. How do I know this is working and effective? Our turnover rate for caregivers in 2023 was 40.6% and our YTD 2024 rate is 38.1%. In addition, the things that are difficult to measure include; laughter from the orientation room, plus comments from the orientees like “You all are so nice here.” Also sharing that they heard if you get a job at Visiting Angels in Kirkland, you are going to love it! Keep in mind, with each new office team hire, we help them understand the culture of our company and what is expected from them where our caregivers are concerned. By holding the perspective that it is our job to attract caregivers, provide them with streamlined technology, mentoring and coaching from the office, excellent benefits, training opportunities, and truly caring for them, caregivers rise to the rank of superstar caregiver. Superstar caregivers provide the best care to our clients! Caregivers do a heroic job every day. They go into the home of a complete stranger and care for them with heart and great love. I am truly grateful for the service these amazing Angels provide our clients. Caring for the caregivers is an honor, and we strive to make life better for everyone every day. ¢LEVERAGING Regina Asuncion Regina Asuncion, CEO and Founder of Ascension Business Solutions, LLC Regina Asuncion is the visionary CEO and founder of Ascension Business Solutions, LLC, a leading provider of Virtual Assistants specialized for home care agencies. With a rich background in healthcare since 2008, Regina possesses deep expertise in operations and marketing, which she adeptly leverages to offer innovative virtual assistant solutions. Based in Denver, Colorado, Regina is dedicated to educating home care agency owners on how to harness the power of virtual assistants to streamline operations, enhance client care, and drive business growth. Her unique approach empowers clients to achieve operational excellence and improved efficiency. When she’s not transforming home care businesses, Regina enjoys traveling the world with her husband, snowboarding, camping, and spending cherished moments with her two dogs, Honey and Teddy. www.ab-solutions.org VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS IN HOME CARE: Unlocking Cost Savings And Efficiency With Heart9 I n an era where efficiency and cost-effectiveness are crucial, home care businesses are discovering the transformative power of Virtual Assistants (VAs). At Ascension Business Solutions, our VAs are not just skilled professionals, but dedicated home care specialists who can take on various tasks, allowing your in-house team to focus on what they do best: providing extraordinary care. This article delves into the manifold benefits of VAs and how to make the most of them for your home care agency. We also include a heartwarming case study and a thoughtful questionnaire to help you decide if a VA is your perfect match. 4 WAYS VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS TRANSFORM COST SAVINGS AND EFFICIENCY 1. Reducing Overhead Costs Hiring in-house administrative staff can be a financial strain. Our clients often see a remarkable 61% reduction in overhead costs by sidestepping high salaries, taxes, benefits, office space, and equipment. Imagine saving an average of $31,000 a year— money that can be reinvested into enhancing the care you provide to your clients. 2. Access to Specialized Home Care Skills Our VAs bring a wealth of specialized skills and expertise to your business. They undergo 80 hours of intensive training, gaining valuable skills that would be costly and time-consuming to develop in-house. Our VAs master software like Wellsky, AxisCare, Preintent, Indeed, Apploi, and Viventium, ensuring you get top-tier service. Unlike local hires, our global talent pool allows you to select from the best, offering a broader range of skills and expertise. 3. Scalability As your home care business blooms, so does the administrative workload. Virtual assistants offer a scalable solution. You can easily adjust the number of VAs based on your current needs, without the hassle of hiring and training new in-house staff. This flexibility allows you to respond swiftly to changes in demand, keeping your business agile. We provide fully vetted, highly trained candidates in less than 48 hours, ensuring you’re never left in the lurch. 4. Enhancing Productivity VAs can handle time-consuming administrative tasks, freeing your core team to focus on delivering quality care. They don’t replace your in-house team; they become an extension, enhancing productivity and job satisfaction. By reducing the administrative burden, your team can dedicate more time to what truly matters—caring for your clients. TOP 5 ROLES OF VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS IN HOME CARE Our VAs are remote home care specialists ready to take on pivotal administrative and operational roles. Here’s how they can support your home care business: 1. Virtual Recruiting: VAs manage the entire recruitment process, from sourcing and screening to interviewing and onboarding qualified caregivers. 2. Scheduling: VAs optimize caregivers’ schedules, and handle cancellations or rescheduling, ensuring seamless coordination and timely service delivery. 3. Virtual Receptionist: VAs manage inbound calls, emails, and client inquiries, ensuring professional and timely communication with caregivers, clients, and their families. 4. On-call Services: A dedicated team of VAs handles all your after- hour and weekend on-call needs, providing immediate support for Next >